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Evil By Design: Leading Customers Into Temptation (SXSW Version)

Draft copy of my talk for South By South West 2014: "Evil By Design: Leading Customers into Temptation"

I'm going to show you how to make your customers happy using techniques that are normally employed by the lowest of the low; con-men, pick-up artists, used car salesmen, and as-seen-on-tv marketers.

You'll learn that it's OK to deceive people, and that in fact we do it all the time already. Using examples from the web and the real world, I'll show that not all deception is bad. In fact, there's a continuum from evil, through commercial and motivational to charitable deception. Customers themselves are often complicit in the deception - they *want* to be deceived!

Rather than the futile task of trying not to deceive, instead ask what your motives are for deceiving. Learn the design patterns, notice when they are being used against you, and most of all, when you design products make sure you are deceiving for good, not for evil.

This is a lighthearted yet serious dissection of dark patterns with a focus on the ethics of persuasive design and practical tips for delighting customers.

Sloth = not performing to one’s true capacityPride = Desire to be more important or attractive than othersEnvy = Uncontrollable urge to possess something that someone else has which you do not (+ wish to deprive the other of it)Greed = Acquisition of wealthLust = excessive thoughts or desires of a sexual natureWrath = uncontrolled feelings of hate or anger – how about subconscious feelings? WE can manipulate behavior by appealing to the subconsciousGluttony = overconsumption to the point of waste. Our brains have consumed so many web pages that we ignore most of the content and make assumptions about the rest.Seven deadly sinsleast resistancefearexclusivitygreeddesireangeroverfamiliarity

Pride = Desire to be more important or attractive than othersSloth = not performing to one’s true capacityPride = Desire to be more important or attractive than othersEnvy = Uncontrollable urge to possess something that someone else has which you do not (+ wish to deprive the other of it)Greed = Acquisition of wealthLust = excessive thoughts or desires of a sexual natureWrath = uncontrolled feelings of hate or anger – how about subconscious feelings? WE can manipulate behavior by appealing to the subconsciousGluttony = overconsumption to the point of waste. Our brains have consumed so many web pages that we ignore most of the content and make assumptions about the rest.

Envy = Uncontrollable urge to possess something that someone else has which you do not (+ wish to deprive the other of it)Sloth = not performing to one’s true capacityPride = Desire to be more important or attractive than othersEnvy = Uncontrollable urge to possess something that someone else has which you do not (+ wish to deprive the other of it)Greed = Acquisition of wealthLust = excessive thoughts or desires of a sexual natureWrath = uncontrolled feelings of hate or anger – how about subconscious feelings? WE can manipulate behavior by appealing to the subconsciousGluttony = overconsumption to the point of waste. Our brains have consumed so many web pages that we ignore most of the content and make assumptions about the rest.

Greed = Acquisition of wealth above what is required - hoardingSloth = not performing to one’s true capacityPride = Desire to be more important or attractive than othersEnvy = Uncontrollable urge to possess something that someone else has which you do not + wish to deprive the other of itGreed = Acquisition of wealth above what is required - hoardingLust = excessive thoughts or desires of a sexual natureWrath = uncontrolled feelings of hate or anger – how about subconscious feelings? WE can manipulate behavior by appealing to the subconsciousGluttony = overconsumption to the point of waste. Our brains have consumed so many web pages that we ignore most of the content and make assumptions about the rest.

Lust = excessive thoughts or desires (of a sexual nature)Sloth = not performing to one’s true capacityPride = Desire to be more important or attractive than othersEnvy = Uncontrollable urge to possess something that someone else has which you do not + wish to deprive the other of itGreed = Acquisition of wealthLust = excessive thoughts or desires (of a sexual nature)Wrath = uncontrolled feelings of hate or anger – how about subconscious feelings? WE can manipulate behavior by appealing to the subconsciousGluttony = overconsumption to the point of waste. Our brains have consumed so many web pages that we ignore most of the content and make assumptions about the rest.

Wrath = uncontrolled feelings of hate or angerSloth = not performing to one’s true capacityPride = Desire to be more important or attractive than othersEnvy = Uncontrollable urge to possess something that someone else has which you do not + wish to deprive the other of itGreed = Acquisition of wealthLust = excessive thoughts or desires of a sexual natureWrath = uncontrolled feelings of hate or angerGluttony = overconsumption to the point of waste. Our brains have consumed so many web pages that we ignore most of the content and make assumptions about the rest.

Gluttony = overconsumption to the point of waste. Our brains have consumed so many web pages that we ignore most of the content and make assumptions about the rest.Sloth = not performing to one’s true capacityPride = Desire to be more important or attractive than othersEnvy = Uncontrollable urge to possess something that someone else has which you do not + wish to deprive the other of itGreed = Acquisition of wealthLust = excessive thoughts or desires of a sexual natureWrath = uncontrolled feelings of hate or anger – how about subconscious feelings? WE can manipulate behavior by appealing to the subconsciousGluttony = overconsumption to the point of waste. Our brains have consumed so many web pages that we ignore most of the content and make assumptions about the rest.

Your aims determine your approach. In it for the cash? Create happy customers? Motivate users to improve themselves? Encourage them to give to others?Measure of evilness: Could you do the same thing elsewhere without the penalties incurred by using this service? If not, the service has an evil niche.Measure of sustainable evilness: can other companies create a similar product in this niche?Swoopo = penny auction site. Pink ribbon = Susan G Komen foundation (breast cancer awareness). 21 Habit = set goals for achieving new skill (21 days to familiarity)

Your aims determine your approach. In it for the cash? Create happy customers? Motivate users to improve themselves? Encourage them to give to others?Measure of evilness: Could you do the same thing elsewhere without the penalties incurred by using this service? If not, the service has an evil niche.Measure of sustainable evilness: can other companies create a similar product in this niche?Swoopo = penny auction site. Pink ribbon = Susan G Komen foundation (breast cancer awareness). 21 Habit = set goals for achieving new skill (21 days to familiarity)

Your aims determine your approach. In it for the cash? Create happy customers? Motivate users to improve themselves? Encourage them to give to others?Measure of evilness: Could you do the same thing elsewhere without the penalties incurred by using this service? If not, the service has an evil niche.Measure of sustainable evilness: can other companies create a similar product in this niche?Swoopo = penny auction site. Pink ribbon = Susan G Komen foundation (breast cancer awareness). 21 Habit = set goals for achieving new skill (21 days to familiarity)

Your aims determine your approach. In it for the cash? Create happy customers? Motivate users to improve themselves? Encourage them to give to others?Measure of evilness: Could you do the same thing elsewhere without the penalties incurred by using this service? If not, the service has an evil niche.Measure of sustainable evilness: can other companies create a similar product in this niche?Swoopo = penny auction site. Pink ribbon = Susan G Komen foundation (breast cancer awareness). 21 Habit = set goals for achieving new skill (21 days to familiarity)

The cover alone is pretty cool, but what’s inside that will fascinate you.

Evil By Design: Leading Customers Into Temptation (SXSW Version)

1.
BY DESIGN
Leading customers
into temptation
Chris Nodder (@uxgrump)

5.
Good versus Evil: a blurry line
Good: Fostered countless children,
gave them all great jobs
Evil: Trust fund kid uses emotional
manipulation to get his way
Alec Guinness, John Howard-Davies “Oliver Twist” (1948)